The experience of becoming a mother transformed the way I view the female body and the creation of life. Inspired by performing in Eve Ensler’s “The Vagina Monologues,” I use the vulva as a symbol of female power.
This work reflects my disgust with the Christian Church’s role in male-dominated societies. Patriarchal religion has relegated women to inferior, subservient roles both in worship and domestic settings. Due to the vast influence of Abrahamic faiths, this damage to women extends beyond communities of worship and pervades secular society. I was raised in Christianity, and although I am now agnostic, I have been profoundly influenced by Christian ideas and teachings, both positive and negative. I juxtaposed vulvas with the traditional style of religious iconography to connect the spiritual and visceral aspects of my experience as a woman as well as provoke thought about how Christianity has been used to dominate and marginalize women for centuries. Regardless of personal belief, acknowledging the divine in female form has potential for profoundly affecting social change and empowering women and girls to view their lives as sacred and significant.
(Meet Mago Contributor) Liz Darling.
I love your work! Thank you for the blessing of experiencing it….it speaks and stirs to my knowing.
Provoking “thought about how Christianity has been used to dominate and marginalize women for centuries” is exactly what we have to do and this stunning piece of art – work is an excellent way to do it. Just looking at this painting is liberating, especially to someone who has been colonized and shamed by patriarchy particularly through sexualizing her body. I love this piece of work!